Before the mist- what happened at Wilderness Camp
by Oi opakio
Summary: This is what happened befor the mist altered Leo and Piper's memories.
1. Chapter 1

_**Hello readers. This is af fanfiction I have wanted to read on this websit, but not been able to find. I just want to say, does anyone know if you can select Heroes of Olympus on the Book thing. Thanks XXX**_

Piper had been wilderness school for only an afternoon and already she hated the place. She hated the students and the teachers and the dorms and the food. But more than this, she hated her Dad for sending her here. After the hassle of first introductions and the crowds which formed round her (and leaving quickly, finding she was of no interest) Piper had only wanted to be alone. That was all she had asked for, but she'd had to sneak out at one in the morning to the flat roof for some privacy. To find it occupied.

Fast asleep, curled in a protective position, was a boy around her age, she guessed. He had dark skin and wild black hair. In the moonlight, his teeth shone contrastingly white in his slightly open mouth. He didn't look like most of the other boys, who were either sturdy, tough and thought the most intelligent thing to say was a swearword, or cool and could cut a person up with comments. In fact, while asleep, he look kind of sad.

Piper would have walked away, really she would have, but at that moment, the piece of paper next to him was blown across the roof from underneath the pen. She darted to catch it before it was lost forever. She thought it must be a letter home, to family. Holding the paper to the moonlight, it took her a while to realise it was in a different language. At first, she'd thought it was just her dyslexia, but after her Spanish lessons in the posh schools her Dad had forked out for before, she could kinda understand it:

Mother,  
Why am I even writing this? If you are actually able to read this, maybe from heaven or something, I love you. I can never forgive myself for what I did to you. It is so horrible her, having to pretend to be someone I'm not. I've been doing that for years now.

The writing stopped there, like he'd fallen asleep while writing. Piper felt a conflict of emotions. He was like her in a way. Well, he didn't have a mother, she knew that much, and he was also unhappy here. And pretending to be someone he wasn't. Check, check, check. Piper felt a sudden rush of hope that he'd be a friend her, in this place full of scary juveniles.

A chocked giggle sounded from behind Piper. She swivelled round to find herself face to face with the three roommates she'd been placed with. Elizabeth, Marri and Kara. Beside them, Dylan stood, a small, sneaky smile playing on his lips. Piper's face reddened.

"Were you checking out Valdez, then?" Kara smirked mockingly.

"Valdez?" I play dumb.

"Leo, you idiot!" She gestured to where the boy was just waking up, rubbing his eyes and then staring in panic and shock at the group. He kneeled up; searching fervently for what Piper supposed was his letter.

"Give it back!" He shouted at Piper, noticing the letter scrunched in her hand, his face reddening.

"Ooh, a _love _letter," Marri teased, and the other girls laughed. Dylan made a sudden lunge for my hand, and ripped the letter from my grasp. His eyes scanned the words. Apparently, he read Spanish.

"Not a love letter," he said craftily, a glint in his dark eyes, "it's a letter to his Mommy. Was little Leo missing home?" Leo opened his mouth, looking both crushed and angry and panicked at the same time. Before he had time to respond, Dylan continued:

"Oh wait. Your Mommy's dead. Poor Leo; poor poor Leo. But wait, you _wanted _her dead. You killed her. Setting that garage on fire- Sneaky." The words hung in the air. The girls' expressions had changed from smug grins to a kind of terror and disgust. And Piper? She wasn't sure _what _to think. Firstly, she was like her dorm mates, disgusted. But his expression, like the whole world had been resting on his shoulders and had finally crushed him flat...

"Leo is a _murderer? _I thought he ran away," Kara muttered.

"Stop it!" Piper spat, in sudden defence. It wasn't surprising when the girls suddenly froze, and Dylan shut his mouth, holding back the comment he had probably been about to make.

"Go away, fall asleep and forget about this in the morning," she spoke, "go!" She poured all of her effort into the last word, and obediently, they started walking to the hatch. She grabbed Leo's wrist as he passed.

"Not you," Piper commanded. He turned to look at her, tears in his eyes.

Suddenly, Leo sank to his knees. Piper followed him, holding him while he sobbed. After a while, he subsided, rubbing his eyes and shaking his head.

"Thank you, for not hating me," he whispered.

"It's okay," she said uneasily, "I know there's more."


	2. Chapter 2

She felt pretty awkward. She was well aware what it would look like now if anyone else came across them. It wasn't the way she wanted to start off my first night at school. But more prominently, if she continued to hold Leo he might get the idea she was pushing for a relationship, or he may think her silly; if she let him go, he might feel stupid himself or rejected.

In the end, it was Leo who broke contact. Even in the light of the moon, he looked pretty embarrassed. She felt a blush force its way upon her cheeks.

"Um, I'm Leo," Leo said shiftily. She grinned suddenly. It was his face- so uncertain. He looked pretty relieved, and cracked a grin himself, looking down.

"You must think I'm – pretty stupid. God, I don't even _know _you!" He exclaimed.

"Hey, it's cool," she trailed off. She desperately wanted to know about the letter, but he was so mysterious.

"I owe you some. Those peacocks thing they know everything. They know nothing..." she felt excitement and apprehension build in her stomach, but before Leo could continue, a voice sounded from behind them.

"I thought I smelt – uh – heard something. Valdez, McLean. Together already are we?" He asked.

"Coach Hedge?" Leo yelped, "I was – we were..." He looked desperately at me for a suitable excuse. My mind went blank.

"You two get to bed now. I'll deal with you in the morning." He instructed. They were ushered inside. Piper hurried to her room.

In the morning, Piper felt pretty rough. Firstly, she woke up to sunlight pouring through her window, giving her a false rush of excitement that she was at her Dad's private beach. When reality hit her- that she _would _be there if it wasn't for that stupid BMW- it was like a whole ton of bricks falling on top of her.

Next, as she was getting dressed, her room-mate awoke and groaned as soon as she lay eyes on Piper.

"God, why do _I _have to share room with an _Indian_?" she groaned, and it took all of Piper's willpower to not throttle the girl.

Finally, lets just say that detention the first Sunday you join camp was _not _the most pleasant experience Piper had ever experience. As she walked to breakfast, that teacher, Coach Hedge, had appeared like he could smell her and the Coach dragged her to a classroom. The other kids were allowed the Sunday off except the ones who got detention.

There was five desks set out around the room, away from each other. The walls were blank, the carpet was blank, the board was blank and soon Piper found her own eyes blank with boredom. Detention was over a three hour period and only for the 'naughtiest' of kids.

Sitting at the front of the room was a hulky looking guy who smelled like cigarette smoke and randomly spat out swear words. Piper curled her upper lip in disgust. She hated people like that. There was two girls who looked about as intelligent as sparrows and much thinner than. They wore too much make-up and tried to pass noted between them, but Coach Hedge caught them more often than not.

Finally, Piper's eyes rested upon Leo. He was sitting directly in front of her. In her fury at the unjust detention, Piper hadn't had a chance to examine him in the light of day. He was thin, very thin, like a stray dog who'd been scrounging around for food at no avail. He wore scruffy jeans and an old t-shirt. His skin was dark and Piper figured he was Latino. She suppressed a smile. It would be nice not to be the only mixed race.

His hands seemed to be moving and Piper watched him for a few minuets. When he'd finished, there was a small, helicopter-like contraption made from pipe cleaners and paper. Appearing to be very interested in the empty board, he casually tossed the thing over his shoulder. It floated to the top of the classroom before spiralling down towards her, almost landing on her desk. She reached out a hand and caught it.

There was an origami folded piece of paper attached to the main blades, designed so the whole thing would spin as the air resistance pushed the angles. It was beautiful, but a note was written on one of the folds. 'Open me'. Piper grinned like a lunatic. It was so clever and sweet. She slid a finger inside the fold and pulled it out until there was an A5 sized sheet of paper. On it was written:

'Gracias de nuevo por la nocha – y lo siento. Esto esta espanol para que nadie mas pueda leerla. Te debo una. Desputes de la detencion, le cuelgan conmig. Conozco a todos los lugares privados de por aqui. Y no, no sea manera.

Leo

Piper translated this to:

'Thank you again for last night - and sorry. This is in Spanish so nobody else can read it. I owe you one. after detention, would you hang with me. I know all the private places round here. And no, not in that way.

Leo'

She felt a rush of happiness, and she didn't know why. One, maybe a little sense of pride that she could actually read the not more or less, and of course, now she had a friend.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hello people! Thanks for reading. I'm trying this little fan fic but this chapter I can imagine isn't too exciting and a bit short. I don't know where to go from here. If you have any suggestions, comment or PM me and that would be fantastic. I really hope someone actually reads this. Your all amazing. xxx**

Piper met Leo outside the doors of detention. His hands fiddled constantly, and Piper felt compelled to look at them. At first, she thought he was making another machine for some purpose or the other, but once anything looked finished, he'd dismantle it and start on something new. Leo saw her looking and grinned.

"Ignore that, I'm ADHD," he said, as if that explained everything, "uh, I don't think I know your name."

"Piper," Piper smiled. She'd never willingly told anyone her name in a while, and it felt good not to be on her guard.

"Follow me," Leo gestured, and she trotted beside him.

"We're not going to the roof again, I hope," she said.

"Nah. I've got another place, but it involves some crawling and escaping. I hope you don't mind getting your hands dirty." Piper shook her head. They walked through the twisting corridors until Piper found herself in a dusty courtyard. It was lined with a chain-link fence with signs on it warning: 'No not touch. Electrical currents'. Just as she read that, Leo touched it.

"Leo, no!" Piper exclaimed. Nothing happened.

"Mostly the kids are too stupid to realise that electricity don't flow through all metals. Anyway," he lifted a loose part at the bottom, "Madam." Piper crouched down, then crawled through.

"Que tal estas?" Leo asked, Piper translated to 'how are you'.

"Leo, I really can only read Spanish, and still not very well," she explained.

"Que tal estas?" He pushed, a vampiric grin on his face, "Solo voy a hablar espanol." 'I will only speak Spanish.'

"Okay, bye!" Piper called, getting up and brushing the dust from her pants.

"Espera!" Leo called standing up, and grabbing one of Piper's hands, "er, I mean wait." Piper was suddenly very aware of his closeness. They were standing no more than ten centimetres apart and her hand was still in Leo's. They stayed like that, silently, for too long. Piper shouldn't have, but she couldn't help but look at his eyes and the way they seemed to dance with fire, and his mouth...

'No,' she told herself, 'I will not fall for this boy. He could have done anything to end up here' She forced herself not to think about the letter and the rumours of murder. Finally, she broke contact, stepping back slightly.

"Um, okay, I won't leave. Happy?"

"Feliz!" He grinned.

"Shut up you," she said, punching him in the stomach.

"Shut up yourself!"

"Make me." His eyes danced with mischief. 'Oh no' she thought. Then he kissed her.

**I know, rubbish first kiss, but it's not like it's romantic or even voluntary on Piper's part. Please help me find out where this story's going. Review or PM- I can make anything happen. **

**Thanks for reading.**


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